Conveyor Toaster with Air-Cooled Panels

Abstract

A conveyorized toaster oven for cooking flat breads, pita and the like uses infrared energy, which raises interior temperatures of the oven. A metallic shell is formed around the oven, which defines an air duct. A blower is configured to force air through the duct to remove heat energy from the exterior surface of the oven cabinet.

1 . A cooking apparatus comprising:
 a metallic oven cabinet, having an interior where foods are cooked and having an exterior surface;   a heat source within the cabinet;   a metallic shell structure spaced away from and covering at least part of the exterior surface of part of the oven cabinet, the metallic shell structure and corresponding parts of the oven cabinet defining an air duct having a first end and a second end; and   at least one air blower configured to force air into the first end of the duct at the first end, over the exterior surface of the oven cabinet and toward the duct second end;   wherein air moving through the duct removes heat energy from the exterior surface of the oven cabinet.   
     
     
         2 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the shell structure has an exterior surface defining an exterior surface of the cooking apparatus. 
     
     
         3 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the heat source is configured to raise the interior region to a first temperature above which human skin burns, and wherein the duct, shell structure and blower are configured to maintain the exterior surface of the cooking apparatus at a second temperature, below which human skin burns. 
     
     
         4 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the oven cabinet has a shape reminiscent of a parallelepiped having first and second opposing ends, first and second opposing sides, a top and a bottom, the first end and the second end each having an opening through which the interior region can be accessed and through which food items can be passed. 
     
     
         5 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 4  further comprised of a conveyor extending between the first and second openings. 
     
     
         6 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the heat source is comprised of a plurality of infrared-emitting, electrically resistive heating elements, which direct infrared energy toward the conveyor. 
     
     
         7 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 6 , further comprising an infrared reflector extending at least part way around the electrically resistive heating elements and directing infrared energy toward the conveyor. 
     
     
         8 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein the shell structure forms a duct having first, second and third sections, the sections carrying air over the bottom, at least one side and at least part of the top surface of the oven cabinet respectively:
 the first duct section having first and second ends, the first end configured to receive air from the at least one blower, the second end of the first duct section terminating at the second duct section;   the second duct section being comprised of a panel that is spaced away from, attached to and covering at least part of a side of the oven cabinet, the second duct section defining a plenum;   the third duct section being comprised of first and second duct layers, both of which are connected to the plenum, the first duct layer carrying a first air flow from the plenum that is in direct contact with the top side of the oven cabinet to an exhaust port, the second duct layer being above the first layer, thermally-insulating the first duct layer from the exterior surface of the cooking apparatus and carrying a second air flow over the first layer.   
     
     
         9 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 8 , wherein the first and second layers vertically stacked with the second layer being above the first duct layer. 
     
     
         10 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 8 , wherein the first end of the oven cabinet is comprised of:
 a first air deflecting baffle operatively coupled to and receiving air from the second layer of the third duct portion, the first air deflecting baffle being configured to direct air from the third duct portion downwardly across the first opening.   
     
     
         11 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 10 , wherein the first air deflecting baffle is comprised of:
 a plurality of perforations in the first end of the oven cabinet that extend into the third duct portion; and   an air deflecting panel spaced away from the perforations by a first predetermined distance, which defines an exterior cooling air flow path, the air deflecting panel directing exterior cooling air downwardly across the first opening in the oven cabinet.   
     
     
         12 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 8 , further comprised of a fan wherein the air deflecting panel is L-shaped. 
     
     
         13 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 12 , further comprised of an L-shaped insulating section separated from the L-first air deflecting baffle by a second predetermined distance, the second predetermined distance defining an air gap between the air deflecting panel and the insulating panel. 
     
     
         14 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein the plurality of infrared-emitting, electrically resistive heating elements are located above the conveyor. 
     
     
         15 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 10  further including a substantially planar infrared shield located below the first opening, above the bottom of the oven cabinet and extending away from the first end of the oven cabinet substantially horizontal, the infrared shield having a horizontal extension distance selected to prevent infrared from the heating element from impinging on surfaces at level that is below the infrared shield and which are spaced horizontally from the first end of the oven cabinet by about six inches or less. 
     
     
         16 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 15 , wherein the infrared shield has a first planar side facing the plurality of infrared-emitting, electrically resistive heating elements and a second side having a heat sink thermally coupled thereto. 
     
     
         17 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 15 , wherein the horizontal extension of the infrared shield is adjustable. 
     
     
         18 . A method of cooling surfaces of a cooking apparatus, the cooking apparatus comprised of an oven cabinet wherein food is cooked and which has a first exterior surface, a conveyor that extends between first and second openings through which a food product can be passed and an infrared heat source within the oven cabinet and directing infrared heat energy toward the conveyor, the infrared heat source also acting to raise the temperature of the first exterior surface, the cooking apparatus also having a shell which covers at least part of the oven cabinet and which defines at least one air duct between the exterior surface of the oven cabinet and the shell, at least part of the shell also defining an exterior surface of the cooking apparatus, the method comprising the steps of:
 forcing air through the duct to remove heat energy from the exterior surface of the oven cabinet and to reduce the exterior surface of the cooking apparatus below a temperature at which human skin will burn.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18  further comprising the step of directing at least some of the air flowing through the duct, across one of the first and second openings. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the step of forcing air through the duct includes the step of forcing air through the duct using a blower, operatively coupled to the at least one air duct.